Biden White House stays unusually quiet on the death of Iranian president and foreign minister

Proponents of a hardline strategy against Iran from around Washington celebrated on Monday as news of the apparent death of the country’s president, Ebrahim Raisi, and foreign minister came in overnight.

But the US State Department and greater Biden administration had nothing to say as it reached noontime on Monday, a symptom of what the administration’s critics argue is a broader inability to outline a clear policy and vision for the future of the Middle East.

The Independent has reached out to State Department press officials for a statement regarding the reported death of Raisi, 63, whose helicopter went down in a province near the country’s border with Azerbaijan on Sunday in heavy fog and poor weather conditions. Around midnight Sunday evening, Iranian state TV reported officials including members of the humanitarian Red Crescent group as saying that “no signs of life” had been observed at the crash site.

Nearly 12 hours later, there has been no official response from the US government. On Capitol Hill, meanwhile, conservatives in the foreign policy sphere celebrated his apparent demise.

“If Raisi is dead, the world is now a safer & better place,” wrote Senator Rick Scott on Twitter. Scott serves on the Armed Services and Homeland Security committees in the upper chamber.

“That evil man was a tyrant & terrorist. He was not loved or respected & he will be missed by no one. If he’s gone, I truly hope the Iranian people have the chance to take their country back from murderous dictators.”

If Raisi is dead, the world is now a safer & better place.

That evil man was a tyrant & terrorist. He was not loved or respected & he will be missed by no one. If he’s gone, I truly hope the Iranian people have the chance to take